Meet Tessa
We are happy to introduce another member to our artisan family, Tessa!
Tessa Burnett owns Hattie Rex, a Montana-based shop specializing in handmade personalized dog tags and jewelry.
Tessa began making hand-stamped dog tags in 2007, when she got her first dog - a yellow lab puppy named Pablo.
“A lot of my friends at the time were having babies and I just had a puppy,” Tessa laughed. “He really meant the world to me and I wanted him to have the best I could afford.”
For Tessa, the best she could afford meant straying from machine engraved pieces and making her own tag for Pablo. After a trip to the local hardware store, searching on Ebay, rummaging through her own tools, and heading to the antique shop Tessa found what she needed to create the perfect copper custom tag for Pablo.
Since then, Tessa’s tags have come a long way. Through hard work, research, and a lot of trial and error, Tessa’s tags have become a hit in the Bozeman area and online. Hattie Rex tags are made of various metals with dozens of fun handmade designs. Each design has a backstory attached to it. Whether the tag tells a story of a pup Tessa babysat or one of her own beloved pets, all of Hattie Rex designs are made with love.
Tessa’s favorite designs are her “quiet tags” which attach right onto your dog’s collar.
“They don’t jingle,” she said. “They don’t get caught on things and you can fit a lot of information on them.”
Follow Sofia
When Tessa isn’t busy making tags or working in her Bozeman, MT storefront, she enjoys hiking, baking, cooking, riding her motorcycle, traveling and hanging out with her own dogs. Right now Tessa’s only pup is her “shop dog,” Sofia, who you can meet on instagram at @sofiathewestie.
While Sofia is her only pet right now, Tessa’s other dogs live on through her work. Tessa lost her black lab, Hollie, about a year ago. Pablo passed away years before. Now, Hollie and Pablo live on through the tags Tessa sells in memory of them.
Like dogIDs, Hattie Rex prides itself on offering a personal experience for each and every customer. All of Hattie Rex’s tags are made by hand by either Tessa herself or her fellow Hattie Rex artist, Cassandra.
“We really like people knowing that we are real people,” Tessa said. “We take a lot of pride in the work that we do.”
So do we, Tessa. Welcome to our family.
